Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 67: Explosion

The ruins were silent.

In the cracks between shattered stones, a pitch-black thread twisted and crawled, slipping through the most hidden gaps.

It was barely faster than an earthworm. Its movements were shaky and unsteady, and now and then, it bumped into tiny pieces of rock. Every time it hit an obstacle, the thread would twist in place a few times, then smack the stone twice with two little pops.

If someone could look down on the entire lodging area from above, they would discover dozens of identical pitch-black threads struggling and wriggling in every direction.

Their center was in the storage room of one of the servants’ quarters.

Inside the storage room, Myss had both hands pressed to the floor, a thin layer of sweat on his forehead. He bit his lip tightly and forced those fine threads of magic power to probe farther.

To be honest, his power was annihilation—a force utterly unsuited for a task like this. But Myss simply couldn’t stand letting Salaar take charge of the plan while he waited there doing nothing. Last time, he had obediently waited inside the seal, and what he had gotten for his trouble was that damned body-swap incident.

If he didn’t do something, he couldn’t calm down at all.

So not long ago, while watching the Knife and Fork crawl along the base of the wall, Myss had come up with an incredible idea.

“We can’t contact the priest, so the priest definitely can’t contact us either.”

“Now that the scheduled contact time has passed, they’ll find a way to investigate the situation. To avoid traps, the one who comes out to investigate will definitely be the Dragon Fae.”

Myss reasoned with great earnestness. “Dragon Faes are extremely sensitive to magic. As long as he discovers traces of my magic power, he’ll be able to find us in no time. I can extend my fine threads of magic outward and use them as guiding markers.”

Salaar thought about it and decided it was feasible. “As long as you can do it.”

“Of course I can!” Myss was full of confidence. “Isn’t it just controlling magic? Simple!”

…Simple my ass! This is exhausting!

Once he actually tried it, Myss discovered that controlling magic at a long distance was no less difficult than doing push-ups. Looking at it, it seemed like no big deal. Actually doing it was a disaster.

He gritted his teeth and extended his magic. His strength was far inferior to his original body’s, and the farther those fine threads crawled, the harder they became to control, increasing exponentially in difficulty. If he lost focus even slightly, they would scatter.

Previously, whether he was manipulating fine threads or weaving black gauze, Myss had always operated at close range. When had he ever suffered like this?

But he had already said those words so he couldn’t show weakness in front of Salaar.

Salaar took out a cloth towel and helped Myss wipe away his sweat. “If you can’t hold on, don’t force yourself. Just go to sleep.”

“You’re the one who can’t hold on.” Myss bared his teeth. “I’m especially good at holding on. I’ll be fine all night!”

A drop of sweat trickled into his left eye, but with both hands occupied, he couldn’t spare one to rub it away; he could only blink furiously in response.

One hour, two hours, three hours…

Myss ached all over and was so tired he was about to stop breathing. His fine threads advanced at about the same speed as a snail and still hadn’t reached the edge of the lodging area after ages.

“Hey, this has nothing to do with you. You should go to sleep.”

Lord Archdemon trembled as he turned toward Salaar, who was staring at him, trying to hide his shaking wrists.

Salaar looked at Myss with unhurried composure. “If you’re tired, then this works out perfectly —we can just go to sleep together.”

“I’m. Not. Tired. At. All!” Myss declared between ragged breaths. “But I think you’re sleepy. Go sleep.”

“I’m. Not. Tired. At. All!” Salaar held back his laughter. “Since you’re not tired and I’m not sleepy, we can just continue.”

“I said you’re sleepy, so you’re sleepy!” A hint of menace entered Myss’s tone. “One of us has to get proper rest… cough, cough…”

“Oh.” Salaar raised his eyebrows. “All right, then. I’ll sleep first. Call me if anything happens.”

Myss immediately nodded vigorously, flinging off several drops of sweat.

Fork lay limp beside his feet like a noodle. It was hard to tell whether it had simply fainted or actually died. Knife had somehow plucked a small tuft of glowing white mushrooms and was using its tail to hold them like an offering of flowers for mourning.

Salaar slowly and deliberately returned to the mushroom circle. He lay down at an unhurried pace and closed his eyes. Five minutes passed, and his breathing became steady.

A few seconds after he “fell asleep,” there came a thud nearby.

Myss collapsed onto the floor and panted heavily. Afraid that Salaar would see him making a fool of himself, he stifled his gasps into barely audible sounds, which only made it sound as if he had burned his tongue.

Heavens, Salaar had never had such a painful time suppressing his laughter.

“Wh-why are you putting yourself through this for no reason?” Fork finally recovered a little and asked in a thread of a voice.

“If I want to survive, I have to work hard and become stronger… It’s not like anyone’s teaching me how…”

Myss suppressed two coughs, his words completely justified. “Of course I have to try everything…”

The amusement in Salaar’s smile faded slightly.

Myss looked down on humans and didn’t care about the human world. Yet this Archdemon possessed nothing more than a strong sense of pride. He couldn’t be called “arrogant,” whether inside the seal or outside it. Myss had never looked down on Salaar as an opponent just because Salaar was human.

To be fair, if it hadn’t been for that inexplicable body-swap incident, Myss would have already broken the seal without suffering a single injury.

Now, Myss was even willing to put in hard work to learn. Salaar had been observing him carefully. After several hours of stumbling practice, Myss’s fine threads of magic power had become much more solid.

This kind of person made the best companion—and most formidable enemy.

…And also the object he admired most.

“Oh, ow!”

The object of his admiration suddenly let out a strange cry. “Someone touched my magic thread. It must be the Dragon Fae! He discovered me. I really am a genius!”

Salaar: “…”

Salaar pretended to have been startled awake. “What happened?”

Myss wiped the sweat from his face. “I’m a genius.”

“I know. What else?”

Salaar simply threw a cleansing spell at Myss. Instantly, Myss’s sweat matted hair fluffed up again and his face looked considerably cleaner.

“That Dragon Fae will come looking for us soon,” Myss said smugly.

Unfortunately, Tass, who came looking for them, brought nothing but bad news.

“I sensed Mr. Myss’s magic and followed it all the way here. The people next door are extremely alert, and it took me quite some effort to sneak in.”

Relying on his small body, Tass squeezed in through the gap under the storage room door, covered in bits of moss.

“I’ll make this brief. Father Kalen has been contaminated by that rabbit named Jinx and was brought all the way into the nearby master bedroom. There is definitely something in that room. The magic fluctuations leaking from inside are even stronger than the Perfected Creation.”

After saying this, he quickly added the related details, especially the details of how Father Kalen had been controlled.

“What a coincidence?” Myss’s eyebrows moved. “According to that group of humans next door, Roman was also taken away by a monster.”

Kalen was protected by divine power. The one who could directly manipulate him was most likely the master of this Divine Realm.

Now they didn’t even need to search for the master of the Divine Realm. They only needed to wait for Professor Gentry to arrive, attack the Master, and rescue the priest and Roman.

He quickly looked toward Salaar, his face clearly saying, “See how useful my move is? Look how smoothly things are going.”

But Salaar didn’t respond immediately.

Yes… It was too much of a coincidence.

Ever since entering this place, he had always felt a subtle sense that something was off…

“The Rabbit Hole” wasn’t an official term. It was merely a tongue-in-cheek nickname used within their circles—yet, sure enough, the ruins turned out to actually be filled with rabbits.

This Divine Realm was complete and powerful, and its Master would even abduct people, yet the entrance to the Divine Realm was completely open, allowing visitors to leave at any time.

The rabbits claimed they hated humans, but in reality, they had transferred everyone to relatively safe places, avoiding the vicious traps set by the Hope family.

The Master, whom Myss couldn’t sense even after using all his strength, had just lightly exposed Their position right under Tass’s nose. Their residence wasn’t even far from them.

…In the end, all they needed to do was defeat the evil Master of this castle and rescue their companions.

The entire sequence of events was unfolding like a fair tale riddled with plot holes.

But after thinking for a long while, Salaar couldn’t identify the trap within it. Every single point was real. He couldn’t deny them.

“Let’s wait for Professor Gentry’s message,” he could only say in the end.

Myss floated unhappily in front of him.

“…It’s thanks to you that Tass could bring the news in time,” Salaar quickly added.

Only then did Myss drift away in a good mood.

……

“It must be this door.”

Asp held a mechanical magic device the size of a book and spoke with absolute certainty. “All kinds of readings inside the door are abnormal, and once you’re more than one step away, they can no longer be detected…”

“This is a very obvious characteristic of a magical space…”

“Isn’t it because of this?”

Beverly pointed at the words on the archway: [Warning: Special Magical Space Ahead]. Under the illumination of the lighting magic device, the words formed from emeralds were exceptionally eye-catching.

“I only trust my own detection results…” Asp muttered.

For once, Beverly didn’t retort. The excitement on her face had faded somewhat. “Professor, could this be…”

“The legendary ‘Divine Realm’,” Professor Gentry said softly.

“I thought that was just a concept fabricated by fanatics.” Beverly looked at the door with a little fear. “In other words, there’s a ‘god’ inside? I mean, a god like the Father of Rhythm?”

“According to Sean, the one who kidnapped Roman is very likely an ancient god lying dormant here. But there are absolutely no records of this in books, and the Hope family has no related records either.”

“Not every god who is worshipped actually existed, and not everything that exists is known to humanity.”

Professor Gentry was silent for quite a while before speaking calmly. “A seeker of knowledge should remain humble at all times, Beverly. Before witnessing it with your own eyes, don’t make reckless guesses based on personal experience.”

“Yes, Professor.” Beverly lowered her head.

Unlike other Archmages, Professor Gentry liked to wander the world. He knew some esoteric knowledge that could be called taboo. Faced with teachings like this, Beverly and Asp never pressed him on the source of his information.

They simply knew that Professor Gentry was right most of the time—the vast majority of the time.

The three of them stopped in front of the archway for only a few minutes before lifting their feet and stepping into the Divine Realm.

Professor Gentry pulled out a wand from inside his robes.

The wand looked like a pure-gold fountain pen. Its shape was simple and dignified, with a rare yellow gem embedded in the cap. He silently moved the pen, and the shadows of the three of them instantly vanished. The soles of their shoes left no trace on the sand and stones.

“Invisibility magic, floating magic, and area soundproofing magic… for three people…” Asp counted the spells on his body. “Professor, won’t this consume too much of your energy?”

“The concentration of magic power in a Divine Realm is exceptionally high.” Professor Gentry replied, adopting the tone of an instructor. “Under a concentration of magic like this, casting spells becomes relatively easy.”

Beverly showed an eager expression.

Professor Gentry: “…However, your mastery of magic isn’t yet sufficient, and you can’t accurately estimate the limits. It could easily cause spellcasting deviations or excessive overdraft.”

Beverly immediately settled down, shifting the topic. “Professor, are we really going to do as Sean and the others suggested?”

“Logically speaking, moving the injured in advance is the most basic of basics. Their injuries aren’t light. At the very least, they should withdraw from the danger zone first… Sean is Roman’s vice-captain, after all. Without Roman there, he should be even less emotional.”

Professor Gentry didn’t answer her. He crouched down to examine the bright mushrooms that had suddenly appeared inside the Divine Realm.

A little farther away, rabbits hurried back and forth. Their baskets were packed full, and they remained oblivious to the presence of the three intruders.

“These rabbits aren’t rabbits. My appraisal magic didn’t take effect.”

Seeing that Professor Gentry didn’t respond, Beverly immediately gave up discussing those tangential matters.

She didn’t know if it was her imagination, but for some reason, she felt that her Professor seemed to be in a rather poor mood.

Asp, however, remained completely oblivious. He followed the Professor and poked the mushrooms. “These mushrooms contain an extremely high amount of magic… I’ve never seen such pure lumps of condensed magic power before…”

“Pay attention to where the rabbits step, as well as the remaining footprints on the ground. Don’t step anywhere the rabbits haven’t stepped.”

After looking for a long while, Professor Gentry straightened. “Beverly, I’ll remove the magic on you. Go negotiate with that group of rabbits. Remember…”

He pondered briefly. “Remember to go along with what they say and have a better attitude. As for your identity, don’t say anything.”

Beverly was somewhat astonished. Unfortunately, they were standing in a dark and terrifying Divine Realm, not a bright and sunny research room, so she asked nothing.

Sure enough, the moment Beverly appeared, the rabbits gathered around her in great alarm.

“Heavens, heavens! How did the soldier rabbits not find her?”

“Take her away! Lock her up with the first batch of humans!”

“Lock her together, lock her together! She came to find them anyway!”

Beverly stood where she was, her expression a little dark.

She suddenly understood why Professor Gentry had told her not to introduce herself.

Only the rabbit they had caught at the entrance had seen them, yet these rabbits recognized her at a glance. And they all knew she had come to search for the survivors.

Just what were these rabbits…

A chill rose in her heart, and she let the rabbits escort her into the castle. Professor Gentry and Asp maintained the invisibility magic and silently followed behind.

The rabbits led them all the way into the hall.

Green, downy moss covered the remains of bones and corpses. Countless mushroom oil lamps were suspended in midair by fine strings, giving the place a floating, dreamlike quality.

On every long table sat teacup ferns. A strange fragrance drifted from silver wine jugs, and on the silver plates lay biscuits, cakes, and steaks made from mushrooms. Beside the plates were small wooden knives and forks suitable for a rabbit’s paws.

Every rabbit was excited. They happily hopped past Beverly’s feet and greeted her in good spirits.

“Banquet! Banquet!”

“The banquet is about to start! Hooray!”

“No more work! No more work!”

These rabbits were adorable. Their fur was clean and snow-white, and they wore pretty little accessories. Yet, when Beverly cast her infallible appraisal magic on them, the only feedback she received was a cluster of question marks.

Faced with unknown beings like this, she really couldn’t relax.

Magic had been so rare more than three hundred years ago. Could there really be some forgotten god? She knew the widely known concept of the “Chaos Archdemon”, but…

Beverly thought as she walked.

However, just as she passed through the hall and entered the corridor leading to the lodging area, something suddenly changed.

Boom!

The corridor full of ruins exploded without warning. A pile of stones fell from above and almost smashed into Beverly.

Beverly was a little stunned. This was indeed the explosive type of magic she specialized in, but she had not done anything yet!

Not far away, in the servants’ quarters…

Amid the rumbling tremors, Sean raised his eyes. On that rigid face of his, a trace of a smile finally appeared.

At the same time, the same smile appeared one after another on the faces of the other survivors.

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The author has something to say:

Although Lord Archdemon likes to call himself a genius, he’s actually very hardworking and pragmatic. [pats head]

If he really looked down on Salaar, he would have gone on the offensive back when he was trapped in the seal.

…However, Mr. Hero previously thought he had never been noticed. Little did he know that the sparks were practically staring holes into him. [OK]

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